Today I thought my 06 was broken.
It would not autostop after being warmed up.

This is Southern California, and the temp was in the 60s so I know it couldn't be cold.

I finally figured out the reason.
I had the fan in the windshield defrost position (mode).

When I put it in any other position (mode) the autostop worked.

Wheww!

Need fewer troops to support.
Drive a hybrid.
Best tank 71.65 MPG.

Before this car I spent two years learning hypermiling on my 2004 HCH1.

Yep, pretty goddang stupid if you ask me. If the windshield starts fogging up while I'm autostopped, I could always just let off the brake momentarily and presto defrost is back on. But no, we can't be trusted to do that. They probably think of it as a safety issue so we don't get fogged up. Well the result is that I never use defrost on account of it disabling the autostop. Definitely no safety advantage there.

So, quite frankly, if you ask me your Civic IS broken, and so is everyone else's. What's the big crime in letting the driver do the driving?

Have anyone tried the defroster autostop hack for the 06?

Hack info can be found here:
http://www.greenhybrid.com/discuss/s...24&postcount=8

Efficient drivers do it better.
1003 miles a tank personal record. 74MPG calculated. HCH1 CVT

I love my Honda but I hate their "we'll do the thinking for you" design mentality.

Yes I'm smart enough to realize that turning the air conditioner on helps to defog the windshield.
But I may just want air blowing in that direction when the windshield does not need defoging.
So why FORCE the air conditioner to come on when I didn't ask it to come on?

ArGGGGGGGGGG


And the "mode" switch.
Shouldn't it be labled "Air Direction"?
And I don't like having to push the same button several times and squint or put my glasses on to see which direction it is sending the air.
Why not leave the switch like it was in the 04 where it is a knob with clearly labled direction graphics?

And please give me back my green LED to tell me when the air conditioner is on.
To determine if it is on I have to push the air conditioner button, which does turn it on, then push it again to turn it off.


ArGGGGGGG

ArGGGGGGGG

Need fewer troops to support.
Drive a hybrid.
Best tank 71.65 MPG.

Before this car I spent two years learning hypermiling on my 2004 HCH1.

I couldn't agree more, and the problem is that all other car builders are the same. They don't really try to think for everyone, they try to program the car in a way that it seems to be most effective for everyone (this sometimes includes safety type stuff). The problem is when people who like to have control over their systems (like most of us) can't because the system engineers thought they knew how to please everyone. Most people probably think it's a good idea to always have the AC on when the front defogger is on because that is the only time they use that setting...when it's getting foggy. I am almost always keep it on the front defogger setting on my other car, and providing I have the fan on when I switch to that setting the AC will automatically turn on. Luckily there is a green light on the AC button which i can turn off, but I get really annoyed that I have to do that every time.

I honestly wouldn't be suprised if other countries were setup differently. Americans in general are lazy so they try to automate as much as they can.

06 HCH Mag. Pearl w/o Nav
05 wrx STi

The fundamental issue is this as far as I can tell. They're trying to set up the car for the comfort and convenience of the average driver. This was all fine and dandy until they decided to start disabling all the other options. Before the days of microprocessor control, it took a lot of effort to implement complex systems that disable features in certain conditions. Now, with microprocessors controlling everything, it's very easy for them to implement control in places where its not needed or wanted. If they're going to do what they think are favors for the average drivers, that's fine, but they need to realize that everyone else still wants to do it their way and should be allowed.

If I want to lock the car without using the remote, I should be able to do that. If I want to spray the windshield without turning on the wipers, I should be able. If I want to use heat with the defrost (which I have always done with no negative effects) I should be able. Sucks we can't make those decisions anymore. At least honda hasn't gotten on the automatic locking and unlocking of the powerlocks bandwagon. If I want the doors locked while moving or unlocked when I park, I will do it myself thank you very much.

Thank you for mentioning this. Husband said when it was raining a couple days ago the car didn't stop, now I know why--he had the defroster on.

The controls also annoy me sometimes--hard to figure out what it's doing or not doing.

I think I will set the automatic locking/unlocking feature though. Seems like I'm always struggling with the door lock when I want to get out.

Zimbop,

I have bad news for you... Honda DOES have power lock and unlock of the doors. It has a couple different setting (default is DEACTIVATED). Check your manual!

:-)

Eric

You must be talking about the 06, I have an 04 - unless the previous owner had already deactivated that "feature". Another great reason to not "upgrade" to the 06.

In any case, they did the right thing if it's user adjustable (especially if you can turn it off completely, an important choice which most "feature" developers fail to recognize). That's how it should be with all that automatic stuff. In the 06 can you use the powerlock to lock and close the door without the key or remote? That would be a nice recovery.

For some options, like this defrost/auto stop issue, I don't think it's lazyness as it is liability. As much as Americans like convenience, we like suing people even more. Since folks don't want to be accountable for their actions, the car has to be accountable for them. Most of the replys in this thread are based on the assumption that the driver is reasonably aware of what's going on and can take appropriate corrective action. Probably 97% of drivers fall into that category. The other 3% are the ones who will get into an accident, blame the fact the defrost didn't come on, and win a 20 million dollar settlement.

*** Retired after 65,000 outstanding miles ***